The museum, opened on November 16, 2009, as a branch of the Kursk Regional Local History Museum, has an exhibition spread over eight halls with a total area of 228 square meters. It presents the literary history of the Kursk region from ancient times to the present day. The museum staff has gathered information about 136 poets and writers associated with this region.

The exhibition includes materials about the first Russian saint from Kursk, St. Theodosius of the Caves, whose name is linked to the first mention of Kursk in the "Life of Theodosius of the Caves," written by the chronicler Nestor.

The Kursk region is also closely connected to the work "The Tale of Igor's Campaign," which describes the heroic and tragic events of the period of the fragmentation of Rus and princely feuds. The unknown author praises the experienced and brave Kursk warriors, "nourished from the end of the spear."

The rebellious spirit of the Kursk people is reflected in the life and work of Silvester Medvedev, the first known enlightener, writer, and poet of the second half of the 17th century, who sought to enlighten the Russian people and dreamed of establishing a university in Moscow.

Since 1798, I. F. Bogdanovich, the author of the poem "Dushenka," lived in Kursk. As a highly educated person, he shared books from his library and played a role in the fate of the future actor M. S. Shchepkin.

The Kursk region is associated with the Decembrist poet V. F. Raevsky, historian N. A. Polevoy, author of works on Peter I, and poet A. A. Fet, whose fate has been linked to the village of Vorobyovka in the Zolotukhinsky district of the Kursk region since 1876.

Kursk land is proud of such names as Nikolai Aseev, Arkady Gaidar, Pimen Karpov, Yuri German, Valentin Ovechkin, Alexander Krivitsky, Pyotr Salnikov, Mikhail Kolosov, Vladimir Detkov, and others.

Particular attention in the exhibition is given to writers Konstantin Vorobyov and Yevgeny Nosov, who were awarded the A. I. Solzhenitsyn Literary Prize in 2001.

The museum also highlights the contemporary literary life of the Kursk region and the activities of the Kursk branch of the Union of Writers of Russia. It is visited by more than 10,000 people annually.